Chapter 3 - His Former Fiancée Tried to Buy Her Silence—Then Lily Discovered the Secret Hidden Inside the Audition Files
By Friday morning, Lily Carter had become the most discussed woman in Denver.
She had not asked for the attention, and she certainly had not wanted the photographs, but her face was suddenly everywhere. Celebrity websites described her as a mysterious newcomer. Financial commentators debated whether Ethan Whitmore's marriage would influence the takeover. Anonymous accounts claimed that Lily had been a paid operative sent to compromise him.
One particularly popular post called her the cheapest bride in American history.
The joke attracted thousands of likes.
Lily read it while standing in line at a neighborhood coffee shop.
Then she closed the application, ordered her usual inexpensive latte, and refused to let a stranger's cruelty ruin her morning.
She had work to do.
At nine o'clock, Margaret called with an update.
The registration office had agreed to preserve the original filing records. The company's information-technology team was reviewing access logs, and the eleven modeling applicants were being contacted individually.
However, the most important document was missing.
The original packet containing Ethan's proxy authorization and the identification materials submitted under Lily's name had disappeared from the administrative office.
Someone had apparently removed it before the investigation began.
Lily listened in silence.
“Can you tell whether it was stolen?” she asked.
“Not yet. The office is reviewing its security footage.”
“And Daniel Cross?”
“He has not responded to our request for an interview.”
“Isn't he the chief operating officer?”
“Yes.”
“So he can access the records, supervise the campaign, and avoid answering questions?”
“He cannot indefinitely avoid a formal investigation.”
“That's comforting.”
Margaret sighed.
“Lily, I know you're frustrated. But we need to be careful. Daniel has been with the company for almost twelve years. He has considerable authority, and we cannot publicly accuse him without evidence.”
“I didn't ask you to accuse him. I asked you to investigate him.”
“We are.”
“Good. Then I would like to see the campaign records myself.”
There was a pause.
“Why?”
“Because someone took eleven women who were hoping to earn a few thousand dollars and used our information for something we never agreed to. Maybe there's something in those files that your legal team would overlook.”
Margaret considered the request.
“I can arrange supervised access to the records that concern your application. You won't be able to access confidential employee information.”
“That's reasonable.”
“I'll send you the details.”
When the call ended, Lily looked at the sewing machine beside her kitchen window.
She had promised herself she would finish three customer orders before the weekend. The dresses were stacked on the table, each waiting for a repair or alteration. Normally, the steady rhythm of her work helped her forget everything else.
Now she struggled to concentrate.
She kept wondering who had selected her.
A memory surfaced from the audition.
Before she entered the conference room, the receptionist had asked whether she was Lillian Carter, the woman who had applied through the working-mothers category.
Lily had corrected her.
“I'm not a mother.”
The receptionist had looked surprised, checked the screen, and apologized.
At the time, Lily had assumed there had been a simple administrative mistake.
Now she wondered whether it had been another clue.
Her application had listed her occupation as a self-employed seamstress. She had included her home address, phone number, and a copy of her identification.
But the category she had selected had been ordinary working women, not working mothers.
Someone had already decided what her application was supposed to say.
Lily opened her laptop and searched her email for the original confirmation.
The message arrived at 5:42 p.m. on Wednesday.
Thank you for applying to the Everyday America campaign. Your application has been approved for an in-person interview.
The sender address looked legitimate.
However, the message contained a small attachment she had not noticed before.
Applicant Summary.
She downloaded it.
The document displayed her name, age, occupation, and application number. Beneath those details appeared a line that made her blood run cold.
SPECIAL SELECTION: EXECUTIVE REVIEW REQUIRED.
Lily stared at the words.
She had never been told she was receiving special consideration.
She had never requested an executive interview.
And she had certainly never met anyone who could arrange one.
Her phone vibrated.
A message from Margaret confirmed that Lily could come to the office at one o'clock.
Lily printed the attachment and placed it inside her purse.
For the first time since the marriage certificate appeared, she had something concrete to investigate.
Whitmore & Lane's campaign department occupied a brightly lit floor filled with fabric samples, mannequins, photography equipment, and racks of clothing in different sizes.
The setting reminded Lily of the small alterations shop where she had worked after leaving high school.
Except this room contained hundreds of garments, professionally arranged under overhead lighting.
She recognized the company's familiar everyday collection immediately.
Cotton blouses, washable trousers, simple dresses, and coats designed for people who needed practical clothes rather than expensive labels.
A young woman wearing a staff badge approached.
“Ms. Carter? I'm Patricia's assistant, Megan. I'll help you access the records.”
“Thank you.”
Megan looked nervous.
“I'm sorry about what happened.”
“I appreciate that.”
“Everyone in the department has been talking about it.”
Lily raised an eyebrow.
“That's probably unavoidable.”
“They're worried the campaign will be canceled. Some of the freelance photographers have already been told not to come in.”
“Is the campaign important to the company?”
“Very. Mr. Whitmore wanted the company to connect with customers who don't usually see themselves in fashion advertisements. My mother is a nurse, and she said she was tired of advertisements showing women who looked like they had never carried groceries or taken a bus.”
Lily smiled faintly.
“Then your mother and I might agree on a few things.”
Megan led her to a small office.
A computer had been prepared with access to the campaign's administrative records. Margaret had authorized Lily to review the files associated with her application, including timestamps, document versions, and approval notes.
Lily began with the original application.
The system showed that she had submitted it at 5:36 p.m. on Wednesday.
Six minutes later, an executive account had opened the file.
The account belonged to Daniel Cross.
Lily leaned closer to the screen.
“Can we check what he did?”
Megan clicked through the audit trail.
The account had viewed Lily's profile, downloaded her identification documents, and changed her application category.
The new category read:
EXECUTIVE EXCEPTION — PAYMENT AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED.
A minute after that, another user account had uploaded a document.
The file name was long, technical, and meaningless to Lily, but Megan recognized it.
“That isn't one of our campaign forms.”
“What is it?”
“It looks like a legacy legal document.”
“Can you open it?”
Megan hesitated.
“I probably shouldn't without Patricia's permission.”
Lily looked at her.
“Then let's ask Patricia.”
A moment later, Patricia arrived.
She examined the record and immediately contacted Margaret. After a brief discussion, the attorney authorized them to open the document in a read-only format.
It was an old legal declaration connected to the Whitmore family trust.
Several pages contained references to the proxy-marriage arrangement Ethan had described. The document was dated two years earlier and identified Charlotte Vale as the intended bride.
Lily felt her stomach tighten.
“That's it?”
“No,” Megan said, scrolling down. “There are more attachments.”
The next file contained the marriage packet prepared under Ethan's authorization.
The intended bride's information had been replaced.
Someone had inserted Lily's name, her date of birth, and the identification number from her modeling application.
The system recorded the substitution at 5:44 p.m. on Wednesday.
Eight minutes after her application was submitted.
Lily stared at the screen.
The person responsible had not discovered her by chance. The process had started almost immediately after her information entered the system.
“Who made the change?” she asked.
Megan opened the next line.
The account belonged to an executive assistant in Daniel Cross's department.
Patricia immediately wrote down the account number.
“Margaret needs this.”
“She'll have it.”
Lily continued scrolling.
Then she noticed something strange.
The modified marriage packet contained a second authorization page, but the page had been uploaded as an image rather than a document. Its edges were slightly uneven, as if someone had scanned a physical copy.
She enlarged it.
At the bottom was a handwritten notation.
Release only after Monday vote is confirmed.
Lily read it aloud.
Nobody spoke.
Patricia took a photograph of the screen using an approved company device and sent it to Margaret.
“Do not touch anything else,” she instructed Megan. “Preserve the access records exactly as they are.”
Lily sat back.
The mistake had not been random.
The packet had been altered deliberately.
But one question remained.
Why had the marriage been filed before Monday's vote instead of afterward?
And why was the release of a specific document connected to the vote being confirmed?
Before Lily could ask, the office door opened.
Daniel Cross walked inside.
He was exactly as she remembered him: navy suit, dark hair, and a small scar near his chin.
His eyes moved across the room, settling on the computer screen.
For a split second, surprise flickered across his face.
Then he smiled.
“Patricia. I wasn't aware we had visitors in the campaign department.”
Patricia straightened.
“Mr. Cross, Lily is reviewing the records connected to the marriage filing.”
“Ah, yes. The unfortunate misunderstanding.”
He extended a hand.
“Ms. Carter. Daniel Cross. I believe we have been introduced indirectly.”
Lily did not accept his hand.
“You were in the hallway during my audition.”
“I supervise several departments. I'm frequently in the building.”
“You also opened my application six minutes after I submitted it.”
Daniel's smile remained in place.
“Executive review is standard for selected applicants.”
“Then why did you change my category?”
“I'm afraid I can't recall every administrative adjustment.”
“Did you change my identity documents too?”
His expression cooled.
“That is a serious accusation.”
“It's a serious fact. Your account accessed my records, and the marriage packet was modified immediately afterward.”
Patricia moved between them slightly.
“We're still establishing the full sequence of events.”
Daniel looked at her.
“Then perhaps this discussion should be conducted through the legal department. There is no reason to expose confidential records to someone who isn't an employee.”
Lily felt anger rise inside her.
“I didn't ask to be involved in your company. Your company involved me.”
Daniel's gaze returned to her.
“And I understand that you're upset. But you should be careful not to confuse administrative access with criminal conduct.”
“I'm not confusing anything. I'm asking why you accessed my application.”
“Because I had authorization to do so.”
“From whom?”
“From the executive office.”
“Whose executive office?”
Daniel said nothing for a moment.
Then he turned to Patricia.
“I assume you'll send me the relevant records before distributing them further.”
“No,” Patricia replied. “The records are being preserved for the legal investigation.”
His smile vanished.
For the first time, Lily saw something beneath his polished appearance.
Not embarrassment.
Fear.
It lasted only a moment, but it was there.
Daniel closed his folder.
“Very well. I trust we'll all remember that this company's reputation depends on responsible communication.”
He walked out.
When the door shut, Megan exhaled loudly.
“That was terrifying.”
Lily looked at the empty doorway.
“Good.”
Patricia glanced at her.
“Good?”
“He's scared.”
“Of what?”
“Of someone finding out what he did.”
At three that afternoon, Lily was summoned to the executive floor.
Ethan stood beside the windows, listening to a call. He ended it as she entered.
“Margaret told me what you found.”
“Your chief operating officer changed my application, uploaded the old marriage packet, and altered the bride's information eight minutes after I applied.”
“I know.”
“Why is he still working here?”
“Because I cannot dismiss a senior executive solely because his account appears in an audit trail. He would challenge the decision, and his lawyers would argue that I was retaliating against someone who might testify against me.”
Lily frowned.
“Then suspend his access.”
“I've ordered an independent security review. His access to the relevant records has been restricted.”
“That's a start.”
Ethan gestured toward a chair.
“There's something else. Daniel has been preparing the board's briefing on the takeover. He had access to the shareholder communications, the trust documents, and the campaign launch schedule.”
Lily understood.
“He knew your original marriage arrangement existed.”
“Yes.”
“And he knew filing a new marriage before the vote would create a scandal.”
“Potentially.”
“Then this was about making you look compromised.”
Ethan nodded.
“But I still don't know why he selected you.”
Lily took the printed application summary from her purse.
“Because somebody decided I needed executive review before I even arrived.”
He studied the page.
“Did you apply for another category?”
“No.”
“Did you previously work for anyone connected to the company?”
“No.”
“Do you know Charlotte Vale?”
“I'd never heard of her before yesterday.”
Ethan looked toward the city.
“Then we need to establish why your application was flagged.”
“Maybe your chief operating officer knows.”
“Perhaps.”
Lily hesitated.
“There's something else. The document said, 'Release only after Monday vote is confirmed.' I don't understand what that means.”
Ethan took the photograph Margaret had sent him.
He read the notation twice.
Then he called his attorney.
Within minutes, the three of them were examining the image together.
Margaret explained that the old proxy packet was only one part of the family trust's records. The more important issue was a provision that required the trustees to review any disputed change in Ethan's marital status before recognizing his household as a potential successor to certain voting rights.
The provision had been created to prevent fraudulent transfers.
Unfortunately, the marriage filing had now created exactly the kind of dispute the clause was designed to address.
“If the board believes the marriage creates a conflict in the trust,” Margaret explained, “they could delay recognition of the Whitmore family's voting authority while the legal issue is reviewed.”
“And the takeover could proceed,” Lily said.
“Possibly,” Margaret replied.
Ethan's expression darkened.
“Daniel knows that.”
“Then the marriage isn't just a scandal,” Lily said. “It's a mechanism.”
Nobody answered immediately.
The realization settled over the room.
Someone had used a legal document to create a dispute that could weaken Ethan's voting position at the exact moment Blackridge Capital was seeking control.
They had not simply wanted a headline.
They had wanted uncertainty.
And Lily was the person at the center of it.
“There's one more thing,” Margaret said.
She opened an email received from the campaign coordinator.
The attachment contained a list of the eleven applicants who had attended the audition. Ten files appeared normal. Lily's application alone had been flagged for executive review.
However, another detail stood out.
The application system had recorded an attempted deletion of Lily's profile at 6:02 p.m. on Wednesday.
The deletion had failed because the profile was already linked to the altered marriage packet.
Someone had tried to erase her.
Lily stared at the timestamp.
“They wanted me selected, but they also tried to delete my application.”
“Or someone wanted to remove the evidence afterward,” Ethan said.
“Which means they knew it had been done.”
Ethan looked at her.
“Lily, I need you to understand something. Whoever is behind this has access to sensitive records, and they are willing to manipulate an innocent person's identity to achieve their objectives.”
“I understand perfectly.”
“You should not investigate this alone.”
“Then don't ask me to.”
Her answer surprised him.
She placed the application summary on his desk.
“Give the evidence to the investigators. Secure your records. Protect the other applicants. And find out who benefits from the takeover.”
Ethan studied her for a long moment.
Then he nodded.
“That's exactly what we're going to do.”
As Lily left the office, she passed Victoria Vale in the corridor.
Victoria stood beside the windows, holding a phone and watching the city below.
She looked up when Lily approached.
“You seem to be spending a great deal of time here.”
“I'm trying to find out why your company's executives used my identity.”
“Our company?”
“Whitmore & Lane. Unless you've decided to purchase it already.”
Victoria's smile was thin.
“Ethan has a habit of attracting people who believe they can change him.”
“Maybe he attracts people who tell him the truth.”
“And you think you're one of those people?”
“I know I am.”
Victoria stepped closer.
“You should ask yourself why a man like Ethan has never needed someone like you before.”
Lily did not move.
“Maybe he did. Maybe he just didn't notice.”
For the first time, Victoria seemed genuinely angry.
She leaned closer and lowered her voice.
“You have no idea what you're standing in the middle of.”
“Then explain it.”
Victoria hesitated.
A flicker of uncertainty crossed her face.
Before she could speak, her phone rang.
She answered, listened for several seconds, and abruptly turned away.
“Not now,” she said into the phone. “I told you not to contact me here.”
Lily heard the words.
Victoria ended the call and looked back at her.
“Stay away from Daniel Cross.”
Then she walked away.
Lily watched her disappear around the corner.
The warning was too specific to ignore.
Victoria had not defended Daniel.
She had warned Lily away from him.
That afternoon, Margaret arranged for the evidence to be preserved and submitted to the authorities. Ethan's security team began reviewing the executive access logs, while the communications department prepared a statement confirming that Lily had not knowingly authorized the marriage.
Yet the most important question remained unanswered.
Why had Lily Carter, an ordinary seamstress with no connection to the Whitmore family, been chosen for a scheme involving billions of dollars?
That evening, Lily returned to the apartment and found a thick envelope pushed beneath the door.
There was no stamp.
No return address.
Inside was a single photograph.
It showed a young woman in a wedding dress standing beside Ethan Whitmore at a private ceremony.
Lily recognized Ethan immediately, although he looked younger.
The woman was beautiful, with long brown hair and a serious expression.
On the back, someone had written six words.
Charlotte was never supposed to disappear.
Lily stared at the photograph until her fingers began to shake.
The original bride had not simply withdrawn from a business arrangement.
May you like
Someone believed she had disappeared.
And if Charlotte Vale had vanished because of the same people who had manipulated Lily's marriage, the scandal surrounding Ethan Whitmore might be hiding something far more dangerous than a corporate takeover.
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